Sheila Jackson Lee: “I thank the gentlewoman from New York, Chairwoman of the Oversight Committee, for her leadership, and Chairman Grijalva…”

“I thank the gentlewoman from New York, Chairwoman of the Oversight Committee, for her leadership, and Chairman Grijalva for his dynamic leadership, as well. I rise today because I just feel moved by the moment to really talk about truth in the moments that I have. I started this morning by citing the Declaration of Independence that said, we all are created equal--a portion thereof--with the unalienable rights of life and liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It is important that today in Pride Month, as I recognize my constituents in Houston, all of them, and the caucus that has been a steadfast advocate in Houston for the rights of all people in the LGBTQI community. It is important to be counted, to be recognized, and I want to emphasize, again, the distortion of how punitive this will be. It is voluntary. I know my constituents. Some of them don't even fill out the Census because they are free. They know they don't have to do it. Some of them don't answer questions on the Census. {time} 1530 For anyone to suggest that this would be punitive and that people would be fearful and they would think not to do it, it is voluntary. And I can assure you that this community, LGBTQI+ Americans, remains vulnerable to discrimination on a daily basis. Only 21 States have laws that explicitly prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation in employment, housing, and public accommodations, and only 20 States have such protections for gender identity. H.R.…”